The Absurdity of Life: Rainbow Gunshot and The Stranger

AMVPlaya’s abstract piece of art Rainbow Gunshot is representative of many of the issues in The Stranger. Albert Camus, the author of The Stranger is an absurdist. He believes that life is absurd, and humans must live in spite of that. The colors in Rainbow Gunshot that surround a singular bullet create an irony that exemplifies Camus’s belief in absurdism, and plays with the mind about the beauty of a rainbow, and the horrors of a bullet. Rainbow Gunshot also relates to Meursault killing the arab man. Rainbow Gunshot and The Stranger are very similar in the issues they represent, and they complement each other nicely.

Rainbow Gunshot is absurd. The bright and vibrant colors contrast with the bullet in the center to create an ironic image. It is absurd because it makes death seem colorful, bright, and happy when in reality it is none of those things. Camus believes that life is absurd also. However he believes that we must live in spite of that fact. This can be seen in Meursault’s view of marriage. Mary asks him if he will marry her, and he simply says if she wants. Marrage should be an important milestone in life, but Meursault does not belive it is important because in the grand scheme of life it will not matter. Rainbow Gunshot and The Stranger also deal with death in a similar manner.

Rainbow Gunshot frames death in an almost beautiful way. By surrounding the bullet in the center with an exotic mashing of colors, the bullet almost looses its horrible conotation. The colors surround the bullet in such a way that it makes death seem easier to cope with, when in reality death is the ultimate tragedy.The Stranger deals with death in a similar manner. Meursault kills the arab man that was fighting with Reymond, yet he is remorseless. Camus uses the brightness of the sun to enhance the reader’s image of the scene, much like the plethora of colors seen in Rainbow Gunshot. Also, both The Stranger and Rainbow Gunshot exemplify death as good. Because Camus is an Absurdist, he doesn’t believe death is bad. The colors of the picture also show death as beautiful, not as horrible.